Religion Dispatches
…erdict, and a gavel. Sometimes God debates will end with an audience poll, but not this one. The question wasn’t finally settled, and still the debaters each did what they do best, despite each other. Sometimes, at a God debate or a football game, the best you can hope for is a decent after-party….
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…now is this: how can we wage this battle even more effectively? How can we best shield ourselves from the inevitable onslaughts of predatory journalists, readers, and politicians who prefer “fake news” over evidence-based, critical discussions on religion and society? How can we more fully reap the rewards of living dangerously? It is not about policing our tone or maintaining respectability. On the contrary, I beg public intellectuals: do not san…
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…en used to target activists and journalists in Russia. The bill’s sponsors promote it as a measure to “protect children from harmful information.” Member of Parliament Aldan Smayil said the legislation’s intent was ““to protect children from information that kills the feeling of warmth and humanity, which is harmful to the health and psyche, promotes violence and is, in short, spiritually devastating to the younger generation.” Finland: Marriage E…
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…orsens and inaction still reigns, they’re learning how to implement an ambitious environmental sustainability plan. It will make them better caretakers of the land that they’ve committed themselves to live—and die—on. Maybe it’s best to save the word “martyr” for other, more violent witnessing happening now in the Middle East and elsewhere around the world. But after seeing Of Gods and Men here, I’m not sure that it doesn’t apply, and in the best…
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…is, Joel Osteen is not selling the preferential option for the poor. Your best life is not being flooded out of your house — ProfB (@AntheaButler) August 28, 2017 Whatever one’s opinion about Osteen, the Twitter storm above Lakewood Church perpetuated misconceptions about disaster response—namely, that all faith communities are naturally adept at it. Lakewood Church may be more typical than atypical, with organizational issues and theology gettin…
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…blind spots. The goal for the food movement must be how to make use of the best of rationalism and the best of traditional ways. Believing that tradition will “save us” is as deluded as believing that its elimination will. Jewish tradition itself acknowledges anxieties over law and restricted behavior. One explanation is often cited to suggest that after the coming of the messiah the pig will change its nature—it will start to chew its cud—and bec…
Read More…s. When asked about the change, Scheidler says, “We searched for the three best photographs we could find because we wanted pictures where people would see the humanity of these people.” Throughout our conversation, he returned to the Christian tenets of compassionate understanding and the belovedness of all people before God, indicating a sincerity that often goes unnoticed in a movement frequently characterized by its violent history. But it is…
Read More…on his self-made man biography rather than individual human rights as the best way to achieve equality.” In early February, the U.S. Ambassador hosted a gathering of activists to brainstorm strategies to combat the possible anti-LGBTI propaganda law that could reach Parliament next year. Also in early February, Randy Berry, the U.S. Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI Persons held a series of low-profile meetings in Jakarta. While high-le…
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…to enforce order at home and abroad. Theologically, this took the form of promoting “biblical gender roles” that dictated unyielding male authority and female submission. Culturally, this resulted in the development of a strikingly militant ideal of “Christian manhood.” For over half a century, evangelical writers and preachers have taught that God filled men with testosterone so that they could aggressively defend faith, family, and nation. They…
Read More…off last year after my accident.) You know what they say about saving the best for last?! So it is appropriate, I think, that in my reading I came across several discussions about the ummah which gave me additional food for thought. The word ummah comes from the same root as the word for mother, umm, in Arabic. So, with such a root, you should get the picture already. It’s about intimate connections. But it is never used for family nor even for e…
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